Cardiff's Kenny Miller punishes West Ham failure to exploit supremacy

Sam Allardyce, the West Ham United manager, watched his team slide to a home defeat in their first match of the season. Photograph: Carl Recine/Action Images

New manager, different division, unfamiliar opponents, same old story. West Ham United's ability to conjure defeat in even the most unlikely circumstances took them to last place in the Premier League last season and as they allowed an under‑par Cardiff City to steal a winner in stoppage time it was clear that Sam Allardyce is yet to rid them of it.

"Everybody will think it's a hangover, they'll think it's the same old story," West Ham's new manager said. "We're gutted because of our performance, in terms of chances created and not converted today. Professional football then kicks you right where it hurts sometimes and today was exactly that. Apart from winning, today was fine. If you lose everybody's going to say you should be better, when really, overall, we were very, very good."

There was at least one, and probably two, verys too many in that summary, but West Ham had enough chances to have won with ease. Perhaps dazzled by the sunshine in which the match begun, or by Howard Webb's astonishing suntan, Cardiff barely put a foot right in the opening half-hour. In the sixth minute they lazily presented Frédéric Piquionne with the ball and the Frenchman ran into the penalty area, danced past Mark Hudson's sliding challenge and shot at David Marshall's legs. Four minutes later the visitors again played themselves into danger, Matt Taylor prodded the ball through and Scott Parker tried his very best to scamper clear, only for his lack of pace and Anthony Gerrard's covering challenge to deny him.

West Ham were also capable of creating chances of their own. In the 16th minute Parker speared a cross from the left with the outside of his right boot and Kevin Nolan headed a sharp chance wide at the near post. A minute later Joey O'Brien ran clear down the other flank, carried the ball into the penalty area and presented Freddie Sears with probably the best chance of the game, lashed over the bar.

The theme continued in the second half: Piquionne, after Taylor had made surprisingly easy work of passing Aron Gunnarsson on the left wing, turned the ball against the crossbar, while Peter Whittingham cleared a James Tomkins header off the line with his knee. Their final chance came with two minutes remaining as Herita Ilunga swung the ball into the box, Carlton Cole flicked it on and Pablo Barrera's header was clutched by Marshall.

If it was a familiar story for West Ham, it was a lack of familiarity that almost did for Cardiff. Since losing to Reading in the play-offs in May, 12 first-team players have left, nine have arrived and there has been a change of manager. Though Don Cowie had a decent headed chance in the first half, Cardiff's freshly minted attacking partnership of Robert Earnshaw and Kenny Miller struggled to spark and it was not until the former was replaced by the 6ft 3in Rudy Gestede, another new signing who brought some much-needed physicality to their frontline, that their fortunes improved. Unusually for a manager basking in improbable victory, Malky Mackay felt forced to defend his side's disjointed display. "We had eight debuts today, which is incredible for one day," he said. "We had four weeks to bring in the nine we've brought in so far and adapt, and as much as you can try and fast-track that you need time. Players need to gel and play with each other. That'll come."

The lack of precision that blighted Cardiff's performance was even evident in the build-up to the winner, which Gestede created after stealing the ball from Ilunga. He ran into the penalty area and passed towards Kenny Miller but the ball was poor, forcing the striker to turn away from goal. The Scot nevertheless improvised a shot that brushed Robert Green's fingers on its way into the net and sent West Ham's fans scurrying prematurely for the exits, yet again.

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